Later this month will be my dad’s birthday. He would have been 101 this year, if he were still alive.

My dad was a product of his times. His language was absolutely not PC, particularly not the terms he used for POC, for Jewish people, etc.

Still, my dad fought in WWII. He worked with African American soldiers. Said that he’d much rather work with them, because they actually did what was asked of them, as opposed to the lazy white country-club boys who often shirked their duty.

My brother’s best friend in high school was African American. His dad was a doctor, a pediatrician. My dad said that if we’d been younger, we would have seen that other doctor, because according to him, for a black man to make it that far he had to work twice as hard as a white man, and be twice as good.

My dad was instrumental at getting his church to be open and affirming. It was mainly young people who were pushing for this but my dad was on the committee as well. Imagine this white-haired little old man standing up in front of his church, his community, and asking, “Why can’t we let these people love? What’s wrong with love?”

My dad would be appalled at the fascists running around today. He went to war to stop them. He would be shocked the casual hate that’s applied to anyone who’s different, who isn’t white and privileged. He would have been at the BLM protests. Marched at Pride parades.

My dad was Antifa. Anti-fascist. Proudly so.

And guess what? So am I.

I know that I have rarely ever talked about politics on my wall. That may change a little. This last year was brutal in some ways. I gave money when I could. And I’ve stayed fairly quiet on my own wall, though I have posted on other people’s.

Can’t do that. Not any more.

The next votes we’ll be casting during the next four years are actually more important than the most recent ones. The fascists have had their day in the sun. They want to stay there.

Don’t let them. Stay vigilant. Stay involved. Don’t think that just because Biden has been elected president that they’re going to all go away. That everything is going to be fine.

The next fascist put forward by the Republicans will be even worse than Trump. The next coupe might actually succeed.

Don’t let it.